Born Today September 9: Paul Capellani

1877-1960

French born actor Paul Henri Capellani was born on this day in Paris.  He was the younger brother of Albert Capellani and the uncle of director Roger Capellani, Albert's son.  Interested in the dramatic arts (and art in general), Paul studied at a drama conservatory run by Charles Le Bargy from 1897 to 1901; he made his stage debut in 1902.  By 1904, he was acting in Shakespeare plays on the stage.  He made his film debut at Pathé in 1908 in Engulfed in Quicksands, a film directed by his brother.  Paul was also interested in sculpture and was quite the promising young artist in this regard as well.  Between 1908 and early 1915 he appeared in a large number of films under the Pathé umbrella, very many of them directed by his brother Albert.  He also dabbled in writing--mostly adaptations of existing literature into film scripts--however he had one original scenario produced in 1910 with Les caprices de Marion. In 1915, he followed his brother Albert to World Pictures in the U.S., and appears in Albert's film Camille (1915) starring opposite of Clara Kimball Young. Mostly following his brother's career Stateside, he increasingly became disillusioned with the cinema acting experience in the U.S., especially after his brother's--and hence his--contract was up at World Film.  He returned to France in 1919 to continue his stage career; though he also resumed his French cinematic career as well.  He continued to act sporadically in films from 1919 to 1922, when he reignited his interest in working in sculpture.  He was only in three more films after this point, two of them 1930's mono talking pictures.  The last film in which he appeared was La lettre (1930).  Paul Capellani remained an artist for the remainder of his life, after having moved to Cagnes-sur-mer France in 1930.  He died there on the 7th of November in 1960 at the age of 83.  I can find no information as to his burial.

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Born Today Sept. 8: Kenneth MacDonald

1901-1972

American actor Kenneth MacDonald (sometimes spelled "McDonald") was born Kenneth Dollins on this date in Portland, Indiana.  Like so many actors of the day, he started out on the stage and is well known for his rising popularity in the 1930's Hollywood scene; but he was in at least one film during the silent era dating from 1923.  He starred in the Western dramadey Slow As Lightning (which for the time being is available on Amazon Prime); the film features some action sequences that look a great deal like slapstick, despite that the plot is of a more serious bent than straight physical comedy.  This would serve him well later on, as he is probably best remembered to fans who are not hard core western aficionados, as being the villainous foil in the Three Stooges shorts.  He has been associated with other silent westerns in the 1920's but it is unclear if he is the same person that appears in these films, or another actor with a similar or identical name (it would be great if someone could get to the bottom of this one). Though his voice was sometimes compared to Boris Karloff, he found a much more comfortable niche in character acting throughout the bulk of his career, which included many television roles and appearances. When he began to appear in pictures for a living in the early 1930's, he at first toiled in bit parts.  His first sound film, for example, was Dirigible in 1931, starring Jack Holt and Fay Wray, his role as Lt. Fogarty went uncredited.  Throughout the 1930's he had a few credited roles, but it was not until after 1938 that his fortunes in this regard changed (though, he was known to take up smaller roles in films throughout the classic Hollywood period).  MacDonald made his television debut in 1950 on The Gene Autry Show; by 1952 he was a bit of a television fixture.  A goodly number of shows that he appeared in were indeed westerns.  The last appearance the MacDonald made in front the camera before his sudden death was in the episode The Test in the series The F.B.I..  Though he had been suffering from lung cancer that had recently spread to his brain, and he was living as a result of this in Motion Picture & Television Country House (located in Woodland Hills) and Hospital, MacDonald died suddenly of a heart attack on the 5th of May in 1972 at the age of 70.  He is buried at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Woodland Hills) Hollywood Hills location.

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Born Today September 7: Émile Chautard

1864-1934

Director and actor Émile Chautard was born on this day in Paris, France.  He started acting on the stage of Paris and quickly transitioned to film--one source gives that he entered films in 1905, but there is little recorded information to back this up.  He is known for sure to have appeared in Fouquet, l'homme au masque de fer (1910) an historical short in which he played King Louis XIV of France.  The film was a Pathé Fréres production.  He is credited with his first directorial outing that same year as well; Barberine--a comedic short--was produced under the original Eclair company (which started in the 1900's as a French production company)--this would wind up being an important connection for Chautard.  Chautard continued on as an in-house director for Eclair, directing numerous shorts for them between 1910 and 1913!  In a few of these, he directed himself; and at least one title, An Accused Inheritance (1911), he both wrote and acted in the film that he also directed (though he had been writing since 1910--his first filmed scenario was After the Fall of the 'Eagle' (1910)). In 1913, Chautard became the head of film production for the entire French Eclair studio, but the call of film from across "the pond" was too strong and he left for the United States in 1914, landing at World Film at the end of that year.  The last film that he made in France was L'indépendance de la Belgique en 1830 in late 1914.  His first English language US production was The Arrival of Perpetua in 1915.  By this time World Film had amassed a whole staff of French auteur directors and Chautard's managerial experience helped  propel him into a role of mentor at the company (his most well known apprentice was Josef von Sternberg).  By 1918 he was free and clear of contractual obligations at World, he worked for various other production companies, eventually starting his own, short lived, production venture.  The one film that he managed to get produced on his own was The Mystery of the Yellow Room (1919).  Chautard remained in the director's chair through 1924, with Untamed Youth being his last turn as a director.  Chautard remembered his early acting roles with fondness and turned back exclusively to acting in 1926 in Paris At Midnight, a film featuring Lionel Barrymore.  He continued to act well into the talking era, with Marianne being his last silent film appearance in 1929 (ironically a remake of a film that he had appeared in that had sound [see below] in 1929 (1929/II on IMDb)) .  He had already worked on films featuring sound, however.  He worked on several partial silents, with Lilac Time in 1928 apparently being the first.  His first full sound film also came early, with Marianne--the original to the remake mentioned above (he also acted in the early sound horror House Of Horror in 1929 that had two versions--one with sound, the other silent). He continued to act well into the 1930's; in fact, right up until the time of his death.  Chautard died on the 24th of April in 1934 in Los Angeles of organ failure at the age of 69 (at least one source erroneously gives his birth year as 1881--which would have put him at just 53 when he died--this is ridiculous considering that he was, for a time, the step-father of George Archainbaud).  The last film that he appeared in was Villa, Villa! in 1934.  He is interred at The Hollywood Forever Cemetery.  

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Born Today September 6: June Marlowe

1903-1984

Actress June Marlowe was born Gisela Valeria Goetten to German immigrant parents in St. Cloud Minnesota.  She was best known for her role of Mrs. Crabtree in the Our Gang series in the early 1930's, where she donned a blond wig to match the hair of child star Jackie Cooper; but she actually made the majority of her film appearances in the 1920's.  Her first film Fighting Blood, dating from 1923, saw her in such a minor role that it went uncredited.  Her first credited role came in 1924 in the role of Kitty Reid in When A Man's A Man.  She was in several films in both 1924 and 1925, including opposite both Rin Tin Tin (yes, Rin Tin Tin!) and later John Barrymore.  One of the Rin Tin Tin films that she appeared in was Clash Of The Wolves (1925), which was nearly lost to history but survives today thanks in no small part to the National Film Preservation Society.  She was one of the WAMPAS Baby stars of 1925 (one can assume that being in this situation, she was "presented" with a "proper" screen name by one of the male studio big-wigs that ran these virtual harem of young girls in the mid-1920's on).  Marlowe did not possess what the studios thought was an acting voice pleasing in the dawning sound era,  and this must have greatly effected her confidence.  Probably as a result, in late 1929, when more and more of the largest studios--like Universal--were experimenting with full sound films, Marlowe made two films for a German production company under the studio umbrella of Universal--both were silent pictures.  Her first sound film--The Lone Defender (1930)--was another Rin Tin Tin film in which she played the Hispanic Dolores Valdez.  She then fell into making shorts with the like of Charly Chase, which landed her the role that she is known for today in 1930 in Teacher's Pet.  Hal Roach also paired her up with the budding film sensation that was Laurel and Hardy.  By this time, her interest in continuing an acting career waned; her last appearance in front of the camera came in 1932 as Mrs. Crabtree one last time in Readin' and Writin'.  She then quit to become a housewife, having married a Hollywood businessman in 1933.  She remained content with this life; though later in life, she became a writer of children's stories.  She died from complications due to Parkinson's in Burbank on the 10th of March in 1984 at the age of 80.  She was originally buried at the San Fernando Mission Cemetery, but was later moved to the new Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, which has a mausoleum in it's basement.

Original marker buried with her brother Louis at San Fernando

Niche in Mausoleum at Lady of the Angels

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Born Today September 5: Doris Kenyon

1897-1979

Actress Doris Margaret Kenyon was born on this day in Syracuse, New York, the daughter of a Methodist minister and  poet.  She got her start in front of audiences singing in choirs.  As she progressed in her college education, first locally, and later at Columbia in New York, her voice stood out more and more.  Eventually she was noticed by theater scouts.  She made her stage debut in 1915, and only a little there after, she made her film debut as well in The Rack, a film made and distributed under  the umbrella of World Pictures.  Her industry standard 1 year contract under World provided here with numerous film roles throughout 1916.  Released from contract she made films for various early studios including Vitagraph, Pathé Exchange and Alice Guy's Solax.  In 1918, she started her own production company (not uncommon for stars of means at the time) called De Luxe in which she starred in four films, one of which--Twilight (1919)--was directed by J. Searle Dawley.  When the 1920's dawned, she was still working on the east coast, a situation that she was loathe to change, despite that she began working for production companies that had more "action" on the west coast than the east.  Fond of the stage, amazingly, she was able to stay through a goodly part of the 1920's in the New York area; even starring in a New York Paramount Studio [Queens] film with a young Rudolph Valentino:  Monsieur Beaucaire in 1924.  The Blonde Saint (1926) appears to be the first film shot in California that she starred in; the film which starred Lewis Stone, was filmed on location at Laguna Beach.  She was barely in California two years before landing a role in a very early talkie by Warner Bros.:  The Home Towners, which is unfortunately a lost film, was released in 1928 with full sound by Vitaphone.  She only made one more film in the 1920's and that was yet another early talkie.  Interference, a Paramount film, also dates from 1928 with Kenyon rounding out a cast that included Evelyn Brent, Clive Brook and William Powell.  Having done in the 1920's what many silent stars had to deal with in the early 1930's, Kenyon's transition to all talking films was pretty well cemented by the time she made Beau Bandit, a romantic western, in 1930.  She continued to work in film steadily up through the mid-1930's, when her appearances slowed.  Her last film appearance before retiring and moving on to other ventures, was in The Man In The Iron Mask a film directed by James Whale.  Kenyon moved on to radio in the 1940's, playing a very successful role on NBC's soap opera Crossroads.  She made her television debut in the 1950's on the Schlitz Playhouse.  She made two more television appearances before retiring from acting altogether.  The last of these was in the Double Date episode of The Real McCoys airing in 1962.  She died of cardiac arrest in her home in Beverly Hills on September the 1st 1979, just four days before her 82nd birthday.  She is buried at the Glendale location of Forest Lawn.  Kenyon's first marriage was to silent film actor Milton Sills, who died in 1930--they had one son together.  Famed actress Doris Day was reportedly named of her.

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Born Today September 4: Étienne Arnaud

1879-1955

French born director Étienne Arnaud was born on this day in Villeneuve-les-Béziers--his birth name was Chiaffredo Arnaud.  Arnaud started directing films in 1905 in France; his first film was Arrêtez mon chapeau!  He directed dozens of films between 1905 and 1907--later getting involved with fellow French director and animation artist Émile Cohl.  He co-directed a number of animated shorts with Cohl in 1909; after which, he continued to direct most of his--almost all of them short subjects--solo.  By 1910, he was a sometimes directorial collaborator of Louis Feuillade.  In 1912, he was lured away to the United States and signed a contract with Eclair.  His first film for them was The Guardian Angel (1912).  Arnaud worked for them under contract for two years; probably the film that he is best known for is the short Saved From The Titanic in 1912-premiering just 29 days after the disaster (the film is now lost).  Though he lived well into the 20th century, he did not make any more films past the year 1914.  His last film The Dancer and the King (1914) was made outside the umbrella of Eclair for Charles E. Blaney Productions.  Arnaud died in the U.S.--San Francisco--on the 11th of May 1955 at the age of 79.  There is no information as to his burial or cremation.

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Born Today September 3: Guy Kingsley Poynter

1915-1983

Actor Guy Kingsely Poynter was no child actor, in fact, he did not make any films within the silent era--not even during Hollywood's pre-code days--his film debut actually came in 1938 as "Henry McInstosh" in Orson Welles infamous silent film Too Much Johnson.  Poynter was born Guy Kingsley William in Great Neck, New York on this day in 1915. Poynter also appeared in a stage production of the Welles work as well.  After 1946, he lived and worked in the UK--this he would do for the rest of his life.  He is best known (at least in Britian) for his role the BBC radio show Journey Into Space, where he played Doc Matthews.   He thereafter appeared a series of low budget films and lesser known British television series.  His last appearance before he retired came in the episode The Dentist in 1965 on The Dickie Henderson Show.  Poynter possibly died in the Greater London area on the 6th of September 1983 in the UK just three days after his 68th birthday (note: some sources state that he died in July of that same year, due to a newspaper obit of "his widow" who died in August--creamtorium in Putney lists him as cremated in June of that year).  His remains were supposedly cremated at Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium.  No word as to their deposal or otherwise.

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Released Today September 4: The Sealed Room (1909)

Born Today September 2: Gardner Hunting

 

 

1872-1958

Writer Gradner Hunting is better known today for his writings after his involvement in the movie industry, starting from around 1925 thorught o 1958, the year of his death.  Obviously, what we are concerned with here are his works within the industry.  Hunting was born on this day in the state of Wisconsin.  He became a story writer, mostly of shorts and these would later lead him into active scenario writing for films.  The first film that his writing inspired came in 1914 with one of his short stories being adapted for Where The Mountains Meet.  Hunting quickly got into scenario writing--his first "screenplay" was produced in 1916 with Paying The Price.  Throughout 1916, he provided various scenorios for film, but kept writing his short stories as well.  In 1917, he was even employed for a short time to adapt other's stories for the silver screen (something that he seemed not to have taken to, given his short time doing it).  Later in 1917, he even began to adapt his own work for films as well.  Little Miss Optimist (1917) seems to have been the first example of this.  Though he would eventually work for some of the major studios of the time (such as Famous Players Lasky), he never worked on a film of any real note.  The last film that he penned came in 1921 with If Women Only Knew, a 1 hour drama filmed in Ithaca, New York.  By 1925, he was writing works that ranged from religious themed science fiction, to out and out religious self help books.  One could say that he was the original Norman Vincent Peale.  In fact, in many ways, Peale's book The Power Of Positive Thinking--which came out n 1952--is a kind of rip off of Hunting's 1934 Working With God.  Hunting continued to write and be published in magazine form right up until he passed away in Burbank, CA on the 21st of November 1958--having left behind a large volume of film scenarios that no one remembered.  He was 86 years old.  I can find no information as his burial or interrement.  

Dating from 1917, he adapted the story for the screen in this drama, independently produced.

 

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Born Today September 1: John W. Boyle

1891-1959

Cinematographer John W. Boyle was born on this day in Memphis, Tennessee.  By the end of his career, he had shot over 150 films, but he got his start solidly in the silent era.  His first film was Greater Love Hath No Man in 1915.  He was in fact, the cinematographer on a film starring Arthur Shirley (II), who was written up yesterday on this blog; the film was The Fall Of A Nation (1916).  By 1917,  he was working for Fox and photographed a great many of their late 1910's iconic films (most of them sadly lost)--including a great many of the Theda Bara/J. Gordon Edwards films.  Even after Edwards was through directing Bara, he kept Boyle on as his cinematographer.   He, for example, shot the now lost Edwards' directed The Queen Of Sheba (1921), which features Betty Blythe who also had a birthday on the 1st of September. From 1922 on, he was working at various studios, including: Metro, Warner Bros.,  and Goldwyn.  He was given top jobs at some the earliest merged studios as well.  1928 brought his first brush with early talking pictures; he was director of photography on The Good-By Kiss a partial sound film directed by the great Mack Sennett, for whom he worked in the late silent era.  He next worked on a short film of Sennett's that had an experimental two-color technicolor sequence: The Campus Carmen (1928).  Sennett's next comedic short The Lion's Roar (1928) was a full sound affair that Boyle also photographed.  Also by 1928, he gained the attention of up and coming directors working under Sennett's umbrella at Sennett Comedies--one of them was Frank Capra.  These aquntiances would serve him well later in his career.  The over-whelming bulk of the films that he shot in the late 1920's and early 1930's were shorts around 20 minutes long.  In 1928 and 1929, he also served as president of the American Society of Cinematographers.  Boyle worked right up until the time of his death, having made his television debut in shooting seven episodes of Big Town in the early 1950's.  The last film that he shot was Courage of Black Beauty in 1957.  Boyle passed away in Hollywood on the 28 of September 1959, almost one month to the day after his 68th birthday.  He is interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.  In 1965, some of his archive footage of Abbott and Costello was used in The World Of Abbott and Costello.  

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